1) Wednesday night, there’s a rad pre-Thanksgiving show at MASS (1002 S Main): technical, shreddy alt-rockers Arenda Light headline, with the ’60s psychedelic pop-copping Natural Anthem and Lawrence, KS-based Americana (Steve Earle is an influence, apparently) act Inside Baseball in the opening spots. Show is 18+, it starts at 9, and though the cover is unspecified (y’all bands need to get that shit worked out and put it in your Facebook invites, lol!), I’d be shocked if it were more than $10; it’s probably closer to $5, in fact. I really love this Natural Anthem song, called “Paranoid”:
2) Along with overeating, yelling at the Cowboys, and cringing at things your relatives say (and vice versa), another local Thanksgiving tradition is the annual Last Waltz recreation at the TANSTAAFL Pub in Arlingfun (409 N Bowen Rd, Arlington), in which over 30 local musicians pay homage to the legendary, final concert of The Band. I’m gonna guess and say that it starts at 9 and either has a free or nominal cover. 21+. Here’s my annual Thanksgiving tradition: posting a YouTube video that contains the entire four hours, 19 minutes, and 32 seconds of the Last Waltz:
3) If you’re accustomed to seeing certain bands (War Party, Dead Vinyl, Matt Tedder, Sealion, Loafers, Acid Carousel, etc.) on a local club’s marquee or Facebook invite with weekly regularity and are confused as to why they all seem to be off this weekend, it’s because most of your favorites are playing Novemberfest in Romney. I’m not supposed to hyperlink to Facebook invites because that’s lazy, but you’ll get more information in a single place straight from the proverbial horse’s mouth that way, so I went ahead and did it anyway. But suffice to say, this is a thing to go to. Click the link to see what I’m talking about, including the lineup, because it really consolidates most of the best local bands around in one place. Ticket sales are closed on Thursday, but you can probably still show up with $20 on either Friday or Saturday and they’ll let you in. Either way, BRING A TENT AND BRING DRINKING ENOUGH WATER TO LAST YOU THE ENTIRE TIME YOU’RE THERE. Novemberfest is also BYOB, so bring some to share with your tent neighbors!
4) If you’re not going to Novemberfest, here’s a good show for Saturday: Lydia Low, The Prof. Fuzz 63, Palace Saints, Jesse Gage, and Science for Giants at the Tin Panther (937 Woodward). Show is 21+, starts at 8, and cover’s five bucks. This is actually a pretty diverse lineup: Lydia Low is a songwriter from Denton (that’s a genre, right?), Prof. Fuzz plays sardonic surf-rock, Palace Saints identify as “indie rock,” Jesse Gage is influenced by pop punk, and Science for Giants probably can explain the why and how behind giant beanstalks. Just kidding – they will appeal to you if you like Crystal Skulls, or on a local level, Movie the Band and/or Chillamundo.
5) Chicago comedian Carly Ballerini is the main attraction at MASS’s Sunday night comedy show. I don’t know if she does jokes about bratwurst, Polish people, or Windy City sports teams, but if she grew up in Chicago, I bet she could if she wanted to! Other jokes will be provided by local comics Brandon Davidson, Lindsey Goldapp, and Shahyan Jahani. Brian Breckenridge hosts. Here’s a Carly Ballerini bit from last month at a place in Des Moines called Beast Village, which sounds like the name of a section of a zoo:
FULL DISCLOSURE/WRITER BIO ALERT: per editorial suggestion, in addition to writing about music and other shit for the FW Weekly, I am an investor in a venue/bar called Main at Southside, colloquially known as MASS. I also bartend at the Boiled Owl Tavern, a bar that also hosts shows a few times a month. And, since we’re on the subject of warning you against what may be perceived as my own icky, unseemly self-promotion and/or conflicts of interest, I play bass in the following bands: Oil Boom, Son of Stan, Darth Vato. Sometimes I talk about one or more of those entities in this space, but I assure you that it has very little to do with my own vested interests; it just happens that the aforementioned venues and bands are part of the Fort Worth music scene, and this music scene is something I care very passionately about, as I have been part of it since 2002.
